NEENAH, Wis. — It took multiple years and a couple of "you’ve-got-to-be-kidding-me" near misses, but in 2018 Appleton’s Brian Farmer finally crossed the finish line faster than anyone else.

He was the champion of the Community First Fox Cities Marathon half-marathon competitive walk.

And, today, he still is.

After lightning storms forced the cancelation of the 2019 race, COVID-19 spoiled the party — and pretty much everyone else’s, for that matter — in 2020.

But the 30th running of the race is once again set. This time, it's on Sept. 19, and Farmer is hoping he can pull one more rabbit out of his hat.

“I’m going to be defending my title, so to speak,’’ said the 69-year-old Farmer. “I’m looking forward to it because, I think, it’s going to be my last one. I’ve been able to train all the way through consistently, injury-free, so I’m hopeful I can have a good performance.’’

Farmer used to be a runner, with a marathon under his belt, along with several road races of various lengths. But in his late 30s, he began to feel pain in his back and down his leg.

Brian Farmer (Courtesy: Mike Woods)

“I was working in Saudi Arabia and taking long, international flights and sitting there for hours on end in my seat,’’ he said. “And I noticed it after that, on a regular basis. If I was sitting for long periods in a plane or in a car, I’d start to get it.’’

“It” turned out to be an issue with his sciatic nerve, which became a constant — and unwanted — companion for years.

“It can range from a dull, steady ache in your nerve — that big nerve that out the bottom of your spine and then spreads to each leg — and it can be up to a sharp pain,’’ Farmer said. “It’s difficult to describe if you haven’t really experienced it.”

Even with the discomfort, Farmer continued to hit the ground running.

“So I stuck with the running as long as I could,’’ he said. “I was even running with the sciatic nerve pain for many years until, finally, about 10 years ago I had to give it up.’’

Enter the Fox Cities Marathon, which has carved a niche in the running community by being far more than a 26.2-mile race.

“So, we like to say we build a platform for people to achieve their goals,’’ said race director Tara Perre, who will be leading her first race. “And sometimes, that’s a 5K, sometimes it’s a 10K. We just added our 10K for this year. The feedback is just ‘Thank you’ because they know we pretty much have a race for everyone, including kids.”

Tara Perre, Fox Cities Marathon race director.

The half marathon walk enabled Farmer to keep sharp his competitive edge, and it has included all the highs and lows of any running event in which he’s partaken.

“One time the guy just nudged me at the end,’’ said Farmer of a previous race. “It was really frustrating. It happened to me twice, once here and once in Eagle River (Wis.). I lose by a fraction of a second. You go 13 miles, more than two hours, then someone beats you by less than a second.’’

And yeah, that sinks. But then, one day, all the proper training and diet and rest all align.

“It was a relief and also very satisfying,’’ Farmer said of his 2018 win. “You put in all that training and it finally pays off and you just have that feeling of almost euphoria, exhilaration.”

No doubt there will be a lot of euphoria and exhilaration for many on this year’s race weekend, including those who won’t be lacing up their running shoes.

“It’s so thrilling,’’ Perre said of the racing returning. “Part of the reason we didn’t do it virtual last year was because we wanted to celebrate the 30th year of the marathon in person. So you can just feel the excitement.”

And when it concludes, this is an event where everybody wins.

“I think the main point is we really have that platform for people to come achieve their goals, their dreams,’’ said Perre. “And then, we give back to the community because of that. We’ve given back over $1 million (to over 100 organizations) over the years to the community, and we couldn’t do it without all the volunteers, all the sponsors and of course, the participants.”

Story idea? You can reach Mike Woods at 920-246-6321 or at: michael.t.woods1@charter.com.